The Cincinnati Bengals took their time in addressing one of the biggest roster issues of all this offseason by waiting until the third round to draft a linebacker.

That linebacker, though, is a source of excitement within Paul Brown Stadium these days.

The Bengals had an eye on Germaine Pratt for a while because of his former status as a safety and how quickly he excelled once moved to linebacker.

Now the Bengals seem to hope he can bring Brian Simmons’ type of quickness and leadership similar to Vontaze Burfict, per Bengals.com:

“But hopes are high he can combine elements of the club’s best backers in the last 15 years with some kind of cross between Burfict’s physicality and Brian Simmons’ movement. Maybe not on the same tier, but a solid combo is just what they need.”